|  New vaccine mandate for truckers drives supply worries Canada’s trucking industry sounded the alarm this week in the lead-up to new vaccine mandates for cross-border truckers, saying new rules could compound supply chain issues and in turn, drive up costs for consumers. Before some brief confusion over whether the revised rules for Canadian cross-border truckers would still take effect as planned on Jan. 15, a spokesperson for Transportation Minister Omar Alghabra said the rapid spread of Omicron is itself a source of supply chain strain. Vaccines are the “best way” to avoid labour shortages in sectors like transportation that are critical to the supply chain, the spokesperson said in a statement. The Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) projects 10 to 15 per cent of cross-border truckers will be sidelined as a result of the new policy, with roughly 12,000 drivers from Canada affected. With fewer drivers on the road to deliver goods from the U.S., expect emptier store shelves in the near future, says Chris Jamieson, a spokesperson for Alberta trucking company Westcore Links. "Everything that you get comes by truck. So, if we have less drivers and less trucks on the road, your stores aren't going to fill up as fast," he said, adding the scarcity is also likely to contribute to inflation. Global News reporter Craig Lord has more here.  Higher interest rates likely won’t tame home prices Home prices across Canada are likely to keep rising in 2022 — even if interest rates move higher and make borrowing more expensive, according to Royal LePage. The real estate agency expects the average home price to surpass $860,000 by the end of 2022, an increase of 10.5 per cent year-over-year. While some believe a rate hike (which, by the Bank of Canada’s forecasts could be as early as April), will "abruptly" bring an end to the current seller’s market, it will not be enough to offset soaring prices, according to Royal LePage. “While rising interest rates slow house price appreciation, higher borrowing costs will be coming off historical lows and the increases may not be enough to offset the significant upward price pressure from Canada's housing supply crisis,” the agency said. Global News reporter Sean Boynton has more on the report here.  What are ‘finfluencers’ and should you trust their advice? In the next installment of ‘Influenced’ — a Global News series examining the impacts of social media — we look at the world of so-called finfluencers, where 20- and 30-somethings talk about finances the way they discuss pop culture, fitness hacks and beauty routines. The recent explosion of financial content on social media, which can make money content approachable and fun, also comes with questions around conflicts of interest, misinformation and outright scams. Regulators say when it comes to who should own the responsibility of policing bad financial content, the duty shouldn't necessarily be on the platforms themselves. Instead, the regulators think they should be working with them. Erica Alini has more on the financial advice being shared on social platforms like TikTok, YouTube and Instagram and whether it can be trusted. ________________________ – THE QUESTION – “I'm 59 and working part-time with a work pension of $500 from a previous job and my husband is 64 and eligible to retire next year with a small pension of $700 if he chooses to retire that year. We have two rental properties right now and a condo where we live. We have a mortgage in all places and would like to move into the smaller rental property when he does retire, sell the condo and finish paying the mortgage on that property as well. The other property I promised my daughter I would sell to her at mortgage value whenever she is ready for that leap. We have about $400,000 in RRSPs between both of us and $40,000 in TFSAs. My husband is eager to start receiving CPP and old age pension when he turns 65, even though he is planning to work a few more years. I think we should wait until he is no longer working – what should we do? And at what age should we convert the RRSPs keeping in mind that most of them are mine and I'm a little younger?“ — A Money123 reader “The decision as to when your husband should start his Canada Pension Plan benefit will require additional analysis. If his estimated CPP retirement benefit is near the maximum, then he may consider starting at age 65 so that his future employment contributions go towards the post-retirement benefit—therefore increasing the overall amount he will receive. This decision would also depend on his amount of employment income. If he is not at the maximum benefit, it is likely best to wait until he stops working and even until age 70 to start. The CPP Calculator tool will help you determine the numbers to decide. When you both start your Canada Pension Plan benefits will influence your decisions regarding when and how much money to withdraw from your RRSPs. If your CPP is delayed past age 65, then you could withdraw from the RRSP to bridge the delayed CPP income. The immediate decision is whether while working part-time you are in a low enough marginal tax bracket to withdraw from your RRSPs. You'll want to look out for any opportunities to withdraw from the RRSPs when your income is lower and to move those savings into your TFSAs. If you sell the rental property to your daughter at the outstanding mortgage value, you will have capital gains to pay, so you will need to make sure you have the savings on hand to pay that year's tax bill.” — David Field, CFP, CCS, Papyrus Planning and CPP Calculator ___________________________ Want your money question answered by an expert? Get in touch! | 
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